Double-digit dispatch: TNT pummels Ginebra anew for 2-0 finals lead

MANILA, Philippines – Playing all 48 minutes, Rondae Hollis-Jefferson knocked in his PBA career best from downtown to power the TNT Tropang Giga to a 2-0 finals series lead over Barangay Ginebra. 

Hollis-Jefferson drilled 6 of his 12 threes for a masterful 37-point, 13-rebound, 7-assist outing as TNT pulled off another double-digit dispatch of Ginebra, 96-84, in Game 2 of the Governors’ Cup best-of-seven finals on Wednesday, October 30, at the Smart Araneta Coliseum.

The TNT import noted that Ginebra turned to the Gilas Pilipinas playbook, which also has Gin Kings coach Tim Cone in charge.

“It was basically a shift in the mindset because, I don’t know if you guys watched, but in the Asian Games, [Gilas] forced me to shoot a lot of threes and they beat us for the gold-medal game,” said Hollis-Jefferson, a naturalized Jordanian who went 3-of-14 against Gilas in the continental tournament finals last year. 

“We talked about that and I kind of, I just shifted my mindset. I knew that was going to be the game plan and they were willing to live with that the whole game. I guess they thought that it was a fluke or it wouldn’t happen, but I’m a professional player,” he added. 

“I work on it every day and I believe in it. My teammates, coaches, they believe in it. They told me to shoot.”

TNT let it fly from downtown, nailing 14-of-37 from the three-point area in the key win, just three days after a surprise Game 1 blowout. 

Unfazed by what seemed to be a momentum shift in the third when Ginebra erected a 57-51 lead, the Tropang Giga clapped back with 10 unanswered points to take a 61-57 advantage.

Following several lead changes towards the end of the third, TNT held on to a one-point lead heading to the payoff period.

Opening the fourth with a 6-0 run, the Tropang Giga remained fastened in the driver’s seat, leading by as many as 12 in the closing minutes.

Justin Brownlee scored 19 points on 7-of-17 shooting, playing all but one minute in the crucial contest for Ginebra. 

Former league MVP Scottie Thompson backstopped him with 18 points and 9 boards.

Ginebra, the league’s most accurate three-point shooting team, was smothered to just 7-of-27 from three, 0-of-3 from four.

TNT could take a possibly insurmountable 3-0 edge as the two clash again in Game 3 this Friday, November 1, at the Big Dome.

The Scores

TNT 96 — Hollis-Jefferson 37, Oftana 13, Khobuntin 13, Pogoy 9, Castro 9, Nambatac 6, Erram 4, Williams 3, Aurin 2.

Ginebra 84 —Brownlee 19, Thompson 18, Aguilar 11, Holt 11, Barrientos 7, Ahanmisi 7, Cu 7, Pinto 7.

Quarters: 23-19, 49-41, 72-71, 96-84.

– Rappler.com